(Bloomberg) -- Prosperity did little to eradicate chronic joblessness last year, based on one measure of the U.S. labor market.
During a survey reference week last year, almost 20 percent of American families had no one bringing home a paycheck -- even with the unemployment rate finishing the year at a 17-year low, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The proportion of families with an unemployed person declined by 0.7 percentage point to 5.8 percent last year. The remainder of American families with nobody working were retirees.
| Characteristic | 2016 | 2017 |
|---|---|---|
| EMPLOYMENT IN FAMILIES | ||
| Total families | 82,092 | 82,015 |
| With at least one family member employed | 66,023 | 66,027 |
| As a percent of total families | 80.4 | 80.5 |
| With at least one family member employed full time | 60,065 | 60,395 |
| With no family member employed | 16,069 | 15,988 |
| As a percent of total families | 19.6 | 19.5 |
Note: Numbers in thousands
The data tracked people who were unemployed, available for work at the time of the government's survey and had recently attempted to find a job.
The number of families classified as having no member employed totaled 16 million last year, or 19.5 percent of all families, versus 16.1 million in 2016, or 19.6 percent.
The trend was most notable among families led by a woman, or 23.2 percent of that category, little changed from the prior year. Similar data show the category for men was at 15.4 percent, down from 16.4 percent in 2016.
The national unemployment rate dropped last year to 4.1 percent in December from 4.8 percent in January of the same year.
--With assistance from Alex Tanzi
To contact the reporter on this story: Vincent Del Giudice in Denver at vdelgiudice@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Kristy Scheuble at kmckeaney@bloomberg.net.
©2018 Bloomberg L.P.
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